Tamiya 1/48 F-14A VF-84 Fear The Bones

[TJ]

I'm all caught up with the updates. Great job on the paint fixes. The decals look fantastic

[handiabled]

The decals look to be going on great! The stencil/data markings should keep you busy for a little while

[jkim]

Thanks for the comments!

The decal application is complete. It took several days, working a section at a time. The HAD and Furball decals both worked very well with the Microset and Microsol solutions.

[keavdog]

Looks awesome. Can't wait for the canopy masks to come off - my favorite part.

[kyledehart5]

Oh, that just looks so nice. Beautiful decal work.

[jkim]

Thanks guys!


After the decals, I sealed everything with a coat of Alclad Aqua Gloss. I then mixed up two shades of gray for the panel wash. Here is the painted bottom before the panel wash.



I used a light gray for the wash on the bottom.



The light gray wash has been completed on the aircraft bottom white surfaces.






Next was the top and sides. I used a slightly darker gray here. Before wash...


After wash...



After completing this rear portion, I decided to finish the wash on the top sides with the lighter gray. Before...


After...



There are lots of angles and overhangs on this aircraft so I have to make sure I treat the entire model with the wash, especially taking extra care to wipe off any unnatural looking smudges.

[jkim]

I noticed that some spider-webbing has occurred on the canopy frame on the starboard side. Sometimes this happens when my clear coat, thinned with Mr Leveling Thinner, seeps into the underlying paint and causes this effect. It's not too noticeable but enough to push me to try a delicate repair.



First I have to mask off the bottom edge of the canopy and the pilots' names. The tape has been de-tacked with my fingertips to help prevent the underlying decals from getting lifted off when I remove the tape.



Black is then carefully sprayed on the affected areas.



Tape is CAREFULLY removed and that issue has been resolved.

[handiabled]

I really like the subtle washes. Just enough to highlight the fine fuselage detail. Fantastic fix on the canopy John!

[garybrantley]

I bet you removed that tape over those decals with some trepidation, John.    It seems like that could go sideways very quickly to me.   Congrats on that save!  😁
She's looking great! You really do some very neat work, John! 

[themongoose]

I like the level of weathering on this one. Super nice build for sure and the cleaner look of a new jet shows it off! Interesting note on why the spider webbing occurs in the paint. I hadn’t thought about that. Glad you threw that out there 👍

[buddho]

Super gorgeous build here... wowsa.

[jkim]

Thank guys! Really appreciate the comments!

With the panel wash complete, I sealed everything up to this point with a satin finish.  I used a 50/50 mix of Alclad Aqua Gloss and Model Master Flat Acryl thinned with 91% isopropyl alcohol.  Mr. Leveling Thinner is my preferred thinner for almost all of my lacquer-based acrylic paints like Tamiya, Mr Hobby Aqueous, AK Real Colors and Aqua Gloss but I've found that the MM Flat Acryl only likes the iso alcohol. The big bits and pieces are then put into place temporarily to see what she looks like at this advanced stage.

























Ok, so what next? That's a very good question and one that I have not quite figured out yet. I want this to be a lightly weathered bird but weathered nonetheless so I'm trying to figure out what techniques would help me get to that point. I think some very subtle post-shading work with the airbrush will be a good first step. Stay tuned!

[406 Silverado]

I've missed these last few updates between being out of town and a birthday celebration pretty much all week long. lol

That pastel wash that you do really does the trick and is one that I will definitely be adopting John (jkim). I've gotta hand it to you bub........you sure know your way around model building.

[jkim]

Thanks Joe!  Appreciate the check-in!


With the exterior painting done and the gear bay masks removed, I wanted to take a closer look at the painted landing gear legs mounted into place.  The inner wheel hubs were attached to the legs and the outer hubs were glued into the wheels.  This attachment sequence is due to the brake lines that are molded as part of the hubs that glue into tiny holes on the gear legs.




The wheels won't be glued onto the gear legs at this moment because I would need to line up the flat spots on the wheels so this is just a temporary attachment.






The view here will be partially blocked when the gear doors are mounted.






I did the same temporary mounting with the nose landing gear.

[Steve Zuleski]

The landing gear and wheel bays look so real from the pin washes, wow! I can only imagine the weathering steps coming soon. Top of the line work, John, very impressive detailed paint work.

[keavdog]

Those gear look just fantastic.

[themongoose]

Dang those bays are just lovely. The demarcation lines between top and bottom colors looks so crisp. Can’t even tell there was tape there, No edge build up. looks terrific!

[jkim]

Thanks guys!  Appreciate the comments!

Aug 31, 2024 15:00:17 GMT -5 themongoose said:

Dang those bays are just lovely. The demarcation lines between top and bottom colors looks so crisp. Can’t even tell there was tape there, No edge build up. looks terrific!

And just to clarify, the demarcation between the Gull Gray and Insignia White was formed with thin rolls of Blu Tack putty.


Slowly moving along with this build while I think about the next weathering steps, I've glued the hybrid Eduard/kit exhaust tubes into the openings of the rear fuselage.




I have two sets of painted exhaust nozzles and they stay in place pretty well without glue so consider them infinitely customizable, open or closed, left or right. Here is the standard port closed, starboard open configuration that you often see on parked Tomcats.






I've started the postshade process on the stabs. Highly thinned mixture of black/brown run over the panel lines and edges and also streaked across the stabs in the direction of the airflow.






Moving on to the wings, I've started playing with a new technique, at least for me. Sometimes, the postshade spray comes out too heavy and I resort to using Micromesh to rub away the excess. I started treating all of the post-shade spray patterns and found that this helps to break the post-shade from looking too "airbrushy", if that makes sense.






Here's an over-exaggerated example of this technique. You can see the initial post-shade is just too heavy and obviously airbrushed.




Micromesh gets rid of some but not all of the post-shade. It tones down the effect and also removes some of the uniformity of the spray pattern.




So using this new-found technique, I am going to start applying post-shade to the bottom and then using Micromesh to blend in the effect.

[kyledehart5]

This such an incredible build. That gear looks amazing. The nozzles are awesome too. And I love the subtle weathering approach. Really enjoying this.

[jkim]

Thanks Kyle! I appreciate the positive vibes!


The post-shading of the bottom is complete. I still need to go over some of the patterns and pare them down using Micromesh.










Now I'm going to step into some unknown waters and try some staining with oil paints. Lots of guys do this but I'm not one of them so I'm just experimenting with something new. The drop tanks, which I assume were re-usable and maybe exhibited considerable wear, are good candidates for the initial test.






I moved on to the fuselage bottoms. Here is a section that has been treated with the post-shade but not with oils.




Small dots of oil paints in various colors are placed on the model. VERY little is needed, especially on this white background.




Using a soft paint brush, the dots of oils are spread and blended into the model surface. A dry cotton swab is used to remove really heavy concentrations of oil paints. Mineral spirits can be used to remove even further. I like this technique because of the ability to remove it.




The other side has been similarly treated with oil staining.




I'll let this sit and re-visit it again to see how I like it. This is a new technique for me and I need some time to process the results!

[keavdog]

Looks great - I think I've seen that referred to as dot filter.

[406 Silverado]

Continuing to blow minds one update at a time John. 

[handiabled]

The addition of oils to the weathering looks wonderful! I love micromesh!

[kyledehart5]

Incredible work.

[TJ]

Your step by step pics on everything you do really helps the rest of us understand your thought process at that time. I've personally used a lot of your techniques throughout the years of following your builds.

Thanks

[jkim]

Thanks guys! Just trying to pass along things that I've been learning along the way.


The weathering work with oils on the bottom has been progressing. At some point, I'm going to have to flip it over and start work on the top!

[kyledehart5]

Really been enjoying this beautiful WIP thread. That’s looking really great.

[jkim]

Thank you Kyle! Appreciate the feedback!

I think I'm getting to a finishing point in terms of weathering the topsides.  I want to maintain the well-maintained look that I'm seeing of photos of VF-84 Tomcats in 1978/79.  The wing sweep staining was kept very subtle to match the overall weathering.

[kyledehart5]

Vey convincing work there. I love this subtle weathering approach.

[TJ]

The weathering looks great. They were pretty well taken care of during this time period so your approach is very realistic